Bad Luck Leads to Disappointing Finish for Erick Rudolph

MOORESVILLE, N.C. (June 9, 2010) - Erick Rudolph, driver of the No. 98 Heinke-Baldwin Racing (HBR) Chevrolet, finished 27th in the Made In America Whelen 200 at Martinsville Speedway on Sunday, June 6. After running in the top-10 for most of the race, Rudolph's day ended early when he was spun on lap 126.

After posting the 15th fastest time in practice, Rudolph and the HBR team improved the car to qualify in the 12th position with a time of 19.253 seconds. When the green flag waved to start the Made In America Whelen 200, Rudolph immediately started to gain positions in the No. 98 H.D. Segur Insurance/Original Pizza Logs Chevrolet. By lap five, Rudolph had climbed inside the top-10, moving into eighth position.

Early in the race, Rudolph knew he had a strong car and radioed the crew to say that the car felt great. He avoided trouble and remained in the top-10 throughout six cautions over the first 84 laps. The No. 98 HBR team made their only pit-stop on lap 86, changing three tires and gaining a position in the pits.

Much of the race was run under caution as the yellow flag came out 18 times. Following a red flag period on lap 111, Rudolph restarted the race in the sixth position behind the No. 52 of Chris Pasteryak. Unfortunately, Pasteryak got off to a slow start after losing fourth gear, which caused Rudolph to be shuffled back several positions on the restart. Rudolph worked his way back up to sixth when the caution flag flew again on lap 120. On the ensuing restart, Rudolph again had to line up behind Pasteryak, who was forced to start in high gear.

Heading into turn one on lap 126, Rudolph was spun from behind. The front of Rudolph's car made contact with the wall between turns one and two, causing damage to the car's nose and radiator. The HBR team was unable to repair the No. 98 car in time, which brought an early end to Rudolph's day.

Following the race, the 18-year-old was disappointed that his finish did not reflect how well the car ran all day.

"We just didn't have the luck that we needed," Rudolph said. "This race was all about survival. I'm disappointed that we had such a solid run going and we weren't able to walk away with a good finish, but the important thing is that we'll definitely have a really fast car when we go back next year. Hopefully we'll be back at Martinsville next year and have a little better luck."

Despite encountering bad luck at Martinsville Speedway, Rudolph remains ninth in the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour point standings. Rudolph will return to the track on June 26 when the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour stops at New Hampshire Motor Speedway for the New England 100.

About Heinke-Baldwin Racing

Heinke-Baldwin Racing was formed in 2009 by H&H Motorsports owner Al Heinke and Tommy Baldwin Racing owner Tommy Baldwin. Both Baldwin and Heinke grew up racing in New England and saw an opportunity to work together to help young drivers pursue their dreams to race.

In 2010, the team's freshman year, HBR is fielding the No. 98H for driver Jimmy Phelps in the Super DIRTcar Series, with sponsorship from Wave Energy Drink. They will also be fielding the No. 98 for driver Erick Rudolph in the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour, with additional sponsorship from Pizza Logs, Brigham Concrete and PrimeTyme Motorsports.